Friday, April 15, 2016

SPIRITUAL EXPLORATIONS – 109

This is the daily exploration for Monday, April 18, 2016.

WE ARE EXPLORING THE PRACTICE OF SOLITUDE

+ Let him who
cannot be alone beware of community... Let him who is not in community beware
of being alone... Each by itself has profound perils and pitfalls. One who
wants fellowship without solitude plunges into the void of words and feelings,
and the one who seeks solitude without fellowship perishes in the abyss of
vanity, self-infatuation and despair.

-- Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Life Together

+ Naomi Kelly of Weaving Home commented on a recent Spiritual
Explorations post on Solitude: “I do agree that solitude is what we make it. We
can find peace in it, or let fear and anxiety be in control. I often think I
want solitude, but it takes a while to get into it, we have to put our devices
down first.”

Yes, “we have to put our devices down first.” And we might indeed find that we are
uncomfortable when we do that but we cannot achieve an intimate, intricate,
infinite connection with ultimate reality unless we can work through the "perils and pitfalls" we encounter when we go deep into contemplation, meditation and prayer. This can happen in community gatherings but
it is often the case that solitude is necessary.

+ I would love it if you offered a guest post on this
practice or any practice. And, I have
work to do on my Solitude Page. Maybe you can help. Send an email with the subject “Solitude” or
“Guest Post” to John@abundancetrek.com.